Along with the widespread use of imaging devices such as a digital-still camera, digital video camera, and the like, multimedia data including digital moving image data, audio data, and the like can be readily handled.
Conventionally, it is a common practice to record multimedia data by a digital video camera or the like on a tape medium. However, in recent years, video cameras and the like which comprise a semiconductor memory, magnetic disk, optical disk, and the like, and can record multimedia data on these media have become increasingly prevalent. Also, digital still cameras, which can record moving image data, have prevailed, and the user can similarly capture a moving image in the same manner as a still image.
In this way, imaging devices that record multimedia data (to be generally and simply referred to as “digital cameras” hereinafter) generally have a function of capturing and recording moving image data beyond the borders of conventional imaging devices.
In a digital camera of this type which has a function of capturing and recording moving image data, it is a common practice to generate one moving image file per moving image capturing operation, and to record the file in a semiconductor memory or the like.
Since captured moving image data is recorded as a single moving image file, which is independent of other files, the user can handle this moving image file in the same way as individual still image files. For this reason, for example, when the user loads files to a personal computer, the files can be easily managed independently of their contents (moving or still images). Also, the user can easily exchange moving image data via e-mail messages.
In case of an imaging device that records moving image data on a tape medium, the captured moving image data is sequentially recorded in the order of capturing due to the recording on a magnetic tape.
However, in a case where moving image data is recorded on a semiconductor memory or the like that allows random access, such limitation is not imposed, and an imaging device can individually handle the moving image files at random sequence. For this reason, in order to meet a demand for sequentially handling plural moving image data, a function such as a play list independent from moving image files must be used, or processing for editing (combining) individual moving image files on a personal computer or the like must be done.
Under such circumstances, a technique which aims at avoiding complicated operations, ordering errors, and the like upon editing/playback in consideration of sequence like tape media has been proposed. For example, it has been proposed to set a digital camera to combine moving image data to be captured with an existing moving image file, and to generate the captured moving image data as a single continuous moving image file. For further details, refer to Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 2002-218384 and 2003-219325.
Upon capturing a moving image by a digital camera in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 2002-218384 and 2003-219325, it is set whether to add a captured image on to an existing moving image file to record as a single file including the existing moving image file or to record a captured image as a single file independent from the existing moving image file. Next, in a case where a moving image is captured in a state of setting for adding the captured image on to an existing moving image file, the digital camera adds the captured moving image on to the existing moving image file so as to update the existing moving image file.
However, in the conventional method, whether or not to add a moving image to the existing moving image file must be set prior to capturing of the moving image. In order to decide whether or not to add a moving image to the existing moving image file, it is necessary to predict what type of moving image is to be captured. For example, in limited scenes such as “athletic meeting”, “marriage ceremony”, and the like, a moving image to be captured can be predicted to some extent. However, in general, it is difficult to predict a moving image to be captured. As a result, an unintended moving image may be added, or after a moving image is recorded as a single file, the user may regret not having added it to the existing file.
Upon adding a moving image, when the user wants to add the moving image by overwriting a part of the existing moving image file, in place of adding it from the end of an existing moving image file, it is very difficult to determine an overwrite location prior to capturing an image. This results in poor flexibility.